


In The Shadows Of My Heart

by christinchen



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Movie Fusion, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-05
Updated: 2011-05-05
Packaged: 2017-10-19 00:55:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/195116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/christinchen/pseuds/christinchen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the cure to magic is found, Uther Pendragon makes it his personal goal to treat every last sorcerer. But then his son Arthur gets captured by sorcerers trying to fight for their freedom with questionable methods. One of them is Merlin, who first turns Arthur's world upside down and then the rest of the world against them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In The Shadows Of My Heart

**Author's Note:**

> written for boxofmagic@lj in 2009; inspired by the movie Push
> 
> originally posted [here](http://christinchen.livejournal.com/139580.html)

  
`Dr Gaius Wilson, Physician and head of research at Camelot Laboratories found an unique Gene that only those with magic abilities possess. "It's a slight mutation in the persons DNA", he explains. "It makes it possible to access higher brain functions that are not accessible for people without this alteration. The way these abilities develop depends on various factors and is from person to person different. As is the intensity and the extent to which these abilities can be used. Based on my research I can say that there are four different types of abilities:`   


`**Movers** manipulate inanimate objects at varying distances. The actual technique is known as kinetic signature control, where the Mover is trained to hear and identify the specific atomic frequency of any given material and alter the gravity wave around it, usually producing the nearby air to appear warped. Advanced Movers can work at the molecular level creating protective shields in the air around them.`

` **Watchers** are trained to self-induce visions of the future, very much like a prolonged sense of déjà vu. A Watcher's skill is primarily rated by how far they can see into the future.`

` **Shifters** can temporarily shift patterns of light on any object to create illusions to the naked eye. They work mostly on a touch basis, but once the illusion is established, it remains with the object for short periods of time. The length of the shift is based on experience and ability.`

` **Stitchers** are psychic surgeons trained to quickly reconstruct cells to their previous or healthy state. Using only their hands, they can heal and even 'unheal' whatever they have done."`

` Dr Gaius Wilson also developed a gene therapy that makes it possible to stop a person from using their abilities. Durability and possible side effects are currently tested under the supervision of Uther Pendragon, head of Camelot Laboratories.`

  


* * *

The heavy wooden door fell close behind him with a loud bang. He strode through his penthouse apartment into his bedroom, pulling open the doors of his walk-in wardrobe with far more force than necessary, causing them to hit the wall. He started hauling out shirts and trousers, seemingly random onto his bed.

His hands were shaking with anger as he went to get his suitcase out.  
His car had been parked just under his bedroom window, diagonally in the parking space, halfway into the street, blocking the traffic. He could hear the honking from below through the open window but he didn't care.

Arthur Pendragon was fuming, more than fuming, he felt completely enraged.  
What was his father thinking by sending him to hunt down some stray sorcerers? They had staff for that. They had a whole department with people _trained_ to find and secure unregistered sorcerers. But it wasn't _his_ job. His job was it to make the deals with various governments and to put off the media.  
He knew that he had fucked up today's deal and yes, it had been an important deal.  
But sending him into the middle of nowhere?! When it hadn't even been confirmed that there had actually been any sorcerers in the area in the first place? Just because some old hag who thought she had seen something?!

He stopped throwing clothes into his duffle bag.

Everything had been just great this morning. He had been sure that this deal was merely a matter of paperwork at this point. The Scottish Government had seemed more than willing to let them deal with the group of sorcerers who had been carrying out raids in the more difficult to access villages in the mountains.  
But in today's meeting, the meeting where all Arthur had to do was to make sure that the contract was signed, someone had started to express doubts that their work was being inconsistent with human rights.  
Arthur had done dozens of press conferences for their company about that exact topic. But today he had let himself be pushed into a defense position. He hadn't been able to simply smooth away any worries his clients may have as he had done so many times before as he was _paid_ to do.

And now, Arthur thought bitterly, now he had to do a lackey's job, because he had about the competence of one as his father had so succinctly put it when he had given Arthur a dressing down earlier.  
He was Arthur Pendragon, junior partner of Camelot Laboratories, Britain's most successful pharmacy company. He didn't _do_ work like that.

His father had had to personally seal the deal, after his failure. Meanwhile, Arthur was left to deal with the mess he had left behind. He now had to find and inject the sorcerers, a job usually allocated to minions in the lower ranks of the company. He hadn't had to deal with such a task since that one year during high school when his father had made him work for the company as punishment for his grades dropping. Clearly, another failure was just not an option. He had to make his father proud of him.

Arthur threw his half packed bag across the room in frustration.

Two hours later he was sitting in a plane on his way to Scotland. For once, it was not Business class but Economy class.  
"My father hates me" Arthur murmured under his breath as he shifted yet again in his uncomfortable seat, squashing his knees against the seat in front of him.  
"No, he doesn't" replied Sean, who was sitting next to him. He was part of the team Arthur would be leading. Pardon, part of the most incompetent team his father had been able to find and had now been assigned to Arthur.  
"He's a nice man."  
Arthur snorted, 'Nice man' wasn't the first thing that came to his mind when he thought of his father, not even when he wasn't having a fight with him. Even on his better days, Uther could be described as a cold hearted tyrant.  
"If you think flatteries will get you an promotion, right now is not the time to talk nice about my father" Arthur snarled.  
"I wasn't..." but Sean stopped hastily as he saw the glare Arthur was directing at him.

  


* * *

"Yes Gwen, I know that, thank you" Arthur was barely restraining himself from throwing the phone across the room. Not that there was actually enough space to throw anything, he thought bitterly, he was staying in what had to be the smallest room in the whole hotel. At least it wasn't the basement and it even had a window. But there was little more space, just enough room for a small bed with a worn mattress and an even tinier table with a phone sitting on it, which had started ringing just minutes after he had checked in and entered the room.

"Well, then make her stop harassing me" Arthur could tell that Gwen's patience was worn thin by the way she wasn't being her ever-polite self. But knowing Sophia, Gwen had probably fielded a dozen calls from her by now.  
'Stupid dinner party', he cursed. 'Stupid Sophia, for making things like that oh so important and being annoyed with him for weeks if he didn't show up.'

"She's not harassing you" he defended his girlfriend without emphasis, "it's your job to take my calls in my absence."  
"She called me twenty-eight times in the last two and a half hours. And I'm your assistant, not your answering machine... Sir" she added quickly, "I'll tell her that you're sorry and I'll send her flowers, tulips even."

Arthur grinned in amusement, knowing Sophia was allergic to tulips.  
It was in rare moments like this when Gwen forgot all about etiquette and being professional, that Arthur knew that he could trust her with everything.  
"She'll be delighted."

  


* * *

Arthur had a bad feeling about this, a very bad feeling. They had arrived at the small village after a strange looking old woman with hollow eyes and wild hair, gave them directions.

The houses were looking like no-one had set a foot in them for centuries, the whole village seemed to be covered in spider webs and dust. It was cold, almost freezing and the sky was dark despite the fact that it was only mid-noon.  
Arthur had never seen anything like this. He knew that sorcerers could do a lot of damage but something to this degree? It just didn't seem possible.

Arthur broke open the door to another empty house. He could feel the aftereffects of magic still strong in the air. He had always had a special talent to _feel_ magic. It was nothing like the abilities sorcerers possessed, his father had made sure of that, just a certain sense that had made his job easier a lot of times and even saved his life more than once.

He turned to call the rest of his team together - the faster they got out of the village, the better. Only to find himself face to face with a man. The right side of his face was scarred and his hand was extended into the air, his finger spread wide, pointing at Arthur.

"What...?" Arthur felt a sudden pain rip through his body, his knees gave out and he collapsed to the floor.

"It's no use calling out for help. Everybody else is already dead" a woman had entered the room. She was shockingly beautiful, her eyes bright blue but she wore a smile so cold it made Arthur shiver.  
"Did you do this?" he asked, indicating to the room around them. If there was a sorcerer capable of so strong magic, he had to know.

"Looks pretty impressive, doesn't it? It's the work of one of your most talented Shifters, Lady Helen, I believe you've already met her. I, on the other hand, have a far more useful power". With a quick flick of her wrist a new wave of pain shot through his body.  
Another Stitcher, Arthur thought before passing out.

  


* * *

  


* * *

Arthur blinked, slowly opening his eyes. Bright sunlight filtered through a window, barely lighting the room but enough to cause Arthur to groan in pain and close his eyes again.  
He tried carefully to move, first his arms, then his legs; but when he tried to turn around, he felt a heavy pain all over the right side of his body. His head hurt and he was having trouble breathing.  
When he was able to take better stock of his surroundings, he found that he was lying on his back on something that was not the floor but not a whole lot more comfortable.

"Fuck" Arthur flung an arm over his face, trying to block the brightness completely in the hopes of lessening the pounding headache that was beginning to build.

On his first attempt to sit up, he felt a wave of dizziness and nausea hit him, forcing him to lie down again. He took a few deep, calming breaths before he tried again, this time more successfully.  
When he had slowly struggled into a sitting position, he discovered a makeshift bandage all the way around his chest, spotting blood strains where he had felt the pain in his side earlier.

Arthur took a look around him, trying to figure out where he could be. The room he was in was small, it seemed to be part of a cottage, maybe. The wallpaper was hanging off the walls for the most part and the brown paint was starting to peel off on the small wooden windows close to the ceiling, and on the low doorway.  
The room was empty but for the narrow bed he was sitting on, with a thin, worn out mattress and an itchy pillow and blanket. He was dressed down to his boxers and after a quick search, he discovered the rest of his clothes neatly folded on a chair nearby.

He had no hope that his gun would still be inside the coat he had been wearing, let alone the small vial with the Cure.

The Cure was his only chance against a sorcerer; one injection was enough for a sorcerer to loose his abilities forever. Over the last few years Gaius had perfected this Cure, after he had found the DNA mutation causing the sorcerer's special abilities. His first attempts had managed to block the use of magic for a few hours but this was a new formula. It could permanently destroy the chromosome necessary to access magic, and most importantly, it was irreversible.

He and his father had been working with Governments all over Europe to find every last sorcerer and have them cured.  
In the beginning most people, magical and not alike, had been relieved to have the remedy and treated the Cure as what it was: a remedy for society's problems. A way to live without magical discrimination and a chance for everyone to live a normal life. Most magical people were relieved to be free of their abnormality, only the insane world domination craving types had ever wanted to keep their abilities. And everyone had quickly agreed that it was better if they didn't.  
Only in the last few years that some voices had gotten loud and claimed that by using the Cure, they were violating human rights.  
Didn't they see that it was for their own good?

Jusr as it was for the good of everyone, that Arthur got out of whatever room he was being held in and did his job in securing and injecting theses sorcerers.

Arthur took a deep breath, steeling himself for the pain to come and pushed his body up. Pain ripped through his body, taking his breath. Arthur took a few wobbly steps in the general direction of the door. If there was a way out he had to find it before his captors came back.  
He suddenly heard a rattle on the door and it opened only a few moments later. Arthur turned around quickly to see who was entering and if necessary defend himself. The movement was too quick for his injuries, making his head feel woozy. He only saw a flash of dark hair before his legs gave out and he went down.

"What the fuck were you thinking? You can't just try and walk around" the boy started to rant as he wrapped his hands around Arthur's arms and helped him up and back to the small bed again. Arthur sat down heavily and studied the boy. He looked around the same age as Arthur, maybe a few years younger, his body slim and his skin pale. He had an unruly mop of dark hair and the most ridiculous ears Arthur had ever seen on anyone. To roundoff his pitiful look, he was wearing clothes at least two sizes too large for him and judging by their condition, most likely hand-me-downs.  
Well, at least the boy didn't looking like he was a threat to anyone, Arthur decided.

"Who the hell are you?"  
The boy gave him a such a wide smile, that Arthur was almost afraid it would split his face in two before he answered: "I'm Merlin"

"Well then, _Merlin_ , mind telling me _what the fuck_ is going on here?" Arthur's voice was impatient and demanding, in exactly that tone that had his interns run and fulfill his every wish at Camelot Laboratories. He was expecting it to have the same effect on some country boy without any trouble.

Merlin looked uncertain for a moment.  
"Umm..." he gave Arthur a quick glance and continued, his eyes cast down, watching his fingers knotted uncomfortably together, "We're holding you captive...?" , he stopped and anxiously watched Arthur's eyes widen even more.

"You're doing what?" Arthur's voice wavered between shocked and angry. Again he tried to push himself off the bed.  
"Wait!" the boy's hands tried to stop him and push him back onto the bed again. Arthur struggled against him but he had to give up all too soon and he sank back, breathing heavily. It didn't seem possible for a scrawny person, like him, to be that strong. Not without the aid of sorcery.  
"Please calm down. You're hurting yourself."

The boy quickly started shoving at Arthur's shoulders, pushing him flat on his back and starting to fiddle with the bandage around Arthur's chest.  
"And _what_ do you think you're doing now?" Arthur grumbled. He was not comfortable with the person who had apparently kidnapped him being anywhere near his wounds.

"Will you stop struggling now? I'm trying to help you."  
When Merlin had finally loosened the cloth enough to slip it off, Arthur could see deep flesh wound, instantly starting to bleed.  
"Shit" he breathed and tore his eyes away. Flesh wounds always looked way worse than they actually were.

"Relax, it's not even half as bad as it looks" Merlin murmured in a distracted manner, his eyes still on Arthur's wound.

This Merlin had to be the strangest person he had ever met, Arthur thought. Whenever Arthur thought he had him figured out, Merlin proved to be the exact opposite.  
When Merlin first came in, Arthur was sure that he was just some dim country boy, without a taste of fashion but then he had revealed that was helping the sorcerers that were currently holding Arthur captive. There was something about Merlin, something he couldn't quite put his finger on, he just didn't seem to be able to put a label on Merlin.

Arthur was pulled from his thoughts when he felt Merlin's fingers ghost over his chest, gently circling the wound, a look of complete concentration on his face.  
Then, without warning, Arthur felt a surge of pain and power rip though his body, his own hoarse scream echoing in his ears before he blacked out. Again.

  


* * *

  


* * *

Merlin carefully cleaned the blood from Arthur's chest, revealing the unbroken skin underneath. The gash was gone and all evidence of it was slowly disappearing under Merlin's gentle care.  
After Merlin had wrung out the rag he was using and had patted the clean skins dry, he let his fingers linger for a moment longer than necessary on Arthur's skins, slowly tracing over the now invisible marks.  
He sighed and forced his hands to still. Arthur might be handsome but he was a prat. And more importantly, a prat with the intentions and means to extinguish every last sorcerer on the planet. All because his father had put all that crap about magic being evil in his head.  
But this was their chance and Merlin wasn't going to waste it. This was _his_ opportunity to prove that sorcerers were _not_ all evil, that one tiny difference in their DNA didn't make them lesser human beings.

Merlin smiled to himself. He would show Arthur Pendragon that his father was wrong and then he could live his life in peace without the fear of getting caught and being brought into one of these facilities Edwin had been talking about, where they did all those horrible tests on you.

Merlin finally removed his hands from Arthur's chest.

Okay okay, so maybe he was a bit of an idealist and probably this wouldn't be as easy as he imagined it in the end. But it was doable and that was why it was important to banish all stray thoughts and concentrate on the task at hand.

  


* * *

"So, how is our _guest_ doing?" Edwin asked as soon as Merlin shuffled though the doorway.  
"Good, all healed up. He's asleep right now" Merlin put the water basin down and started moving around the things that had piled up on the kitchen table, anything to keep his hands occupied. He could feel Edwin's curious glance on him, watching his every movement.  
"Merlin, why are you still doing this with your hands? You have to use your powers in order to train them" Edwin told him after a few minutes of silence.  
"I know"

Merlin hadn't told a lot of people that he had more than one ability. Because not even Edwin, who knew pretty much everything there was about the science behind their magic abilities, could find an explanation for it. Merlin had tried to explain to him that it was just the way that he was. He didn't think that Edwin was convinced.  
"So, how is your research with the Cure we found on Arthur going?" Merlin asked, his voice breaking the silence.  
"Good, great actually. The Cure in the vial is a newer version than we had before in it's pure form. It's a lot stronger. We're currently testing how long it blocks the magic form being used. Valiant is fuming, it's been more than twenty-four hours and still nothing" Edwin grinned at that. Merlin knew that Edwin didn't like Valiant particularly. Which was why he was often picked as a test subject for things like that. When a sorcerer was injected with the Cure he usually couldn't perform any magic until every trace of the Cure was out of his body. It took up to twenty-four hours, depending on how strong the particular batch of the Cure was.  
Merlin himself had never been injected with the Cure but from what he had heard from the others - those injected by Uther Pendragon's people and Edwin's test subjects alike - it had to feel horrible. Valiant said it felt like an almost forgotten memory that you couldn't quite grasp. Others had told him that it felt like a piece of your very existence was missing.  
Although Merlin had never liked them, Edwin still claimed that these tests on their own people were necessary.

"Anyways" Edwin continued, "I was starting to examine the formula this morning and I think I have found a way to unlock the gene responsible for magic"  
Merlin couldn't help but grin at the big smile on Edwin's face.  
"You mean like a cure for the Cure?"  
"I can do a lot better than that. If this works we can turn _any_ non-magical person into a sorcerer. Isn't that great? Just imagine what that means. We can finally get back at them for everything they've done to us over the last years. We can finally fight back and we'll start with Arthur Pendragon!"

Merlin felt his smile freeze on his face, a cold shiver run down his spine.

  


* * *

Merlin was walking up and down the narrow hallway nervously, his hands stuffed into his jeans pockets. He knew what could be happening inside this room, and there was nothing he could do about it. No matter what he thought or how wrong it felt.  
It was his job to wait outside, to wait until they were finished with him, then bring him back into the room, heal him if necessary. It was his job to gain Arthur's trust.  
It was not, however, Merlin's job to worry about him.

Merlin's mind was reeling with what could possibly be happening on the other side of this door right now. Whether Edwin's serum was working or not, how it would be working. Nobody had been able to find a way to determine which ability a sorcerer had without having them perform magic. Who knew what ability Arthur would have or how Arthur would react to it?

It seemed to take forever for the door to finally open again and Edwin beckoning him inside.

Merlin tried to carefully school his features as his eyes fell on the unconscious body on one of the infirmary beds, carefully suppressing the nausea, he felt at the sight of Arthur's pale form, Merlin stepped closer.  
He barely heard Edwin talking, his eyes focused on the pale figure lying in front of him.  
"... think it worked... should take effect in a few hours... full surveillance... can't risk anything..."

Edwin's words were barely heard by Merlin drowned out by his own thoughts repeating over and over in his head: We're not better than them. We were supposed to change things, not make them worse. We used their methods for our own goals, that makes use even worse than them.

How can we claim to fight against sorcerers being ripped from their magic abilities when we are forcing magic abilities onto non-magic people?

  


* * *

  


* * *

"How are you feeling?" a soft voice fought it's way through the fog that clouded Arthur's brain. He opened his eyes and blinked a few times uselessly, trying to clear his sight.  
"Wha'hppnd?" he asked as the blob hovering at his bedside became more and more Merlin-shaped.

"Are you in pain? I couldn't risk healing you" Arthur strained to hear over the rush of blood in his head, still trying to comprehend what had happened. He barely noticed the soft touch of cool hands on his face, yet unconsciously leaned closer into the gentle caress.

"They took me into a lab or something. They gave me an injection, I think it was the Cure I had with me..." Arthur began talking, still trying to clear his head.

"It wasn't. It was a modified version" Merlin explained, "And you do realize that I'm one of _them_ , right?"

"No" Arthur's voice was slurred with exhaustion, "You're different."

Merlin stared into the space above Arthur's head for long moments, carefully not meeting the other man's eyes. He was a sorcerer just like all the people of the village. He had lived with them for almost two years now. Edwin had accepted him as son, had trained him in his skills. He hadn't felt like an intruder for some time now. But what did Arthur mean then?

"I'm different? How?" he finally asked, "Arthur?"  
But when Merlin turned back, he had already fallen asleep again.

  


* * *

"Hey Edwin, can I talk to you for a second?" Merlin was hesitant to knock on the open door to his guardian's workspace but he couldn't get what Arthur had said to him out of his head.

"Sure, come in" Edwin replied without looking up from the chemicals he was fussing with.

"Any signs of magic from our _guest_?" the venom was evident in his voice but in an instant, Edwin's voice changed back to a professional tone as he turned the topic back to his work, "I'm still trying to enhance the formula. I'm not sure what to do with a few components in it. The _great_ Dr Gaius Wilson was always getting paranoid someone could be able to steal his works" Merlin knew from experience that once Edwin started ranting about Gaius, it was best to just keep quiet until he was finished. Agreeing with him made Edwin furious but disagreeing had him transfer all his bottled-up anger against his former tutor onto Merlin. It was a lesson he had had to learn the hard way but by now he knew when to shut up.

"You had something you wanted to talk about?" Edwin said finally. "You're not having trouble with Valiant again, are you?"  
Edwin had had to interfere on more than one occasion when Merlin had gotten into trouble because of using magic against Valiant. It wasn't like Merlin had wanted to do anything like that. His mother had always warned him about using his gifts for his own favor. But when it came to Valiant, Merlin had more than once overstepped his boundaries and of course it had been him who had been blamed in the end.

"No, everything's alright. He's too busy moping that you injected him with the Cure" Merlin answered with a sly grin. Then he remembered why he had come to see Edwin and sobered immediately. "It's something Ar... something someone else said, actually. About me being different than the rest of you. And I just..." he trailed off feeling uncertain.

"Merlin" Edwin's voice was soft as he sat down the chemicals and turned to Merlin, "I took you in, I looked after you just as I promised your mother. I'm paying for you to go to med school, so that one day you can take over what I started here" he rested a hand on Merlin's shoulder, "You are like a son to me, and you belong here, just like everybody else does."

Merlin took an unsteady breath, trying to calm the thoughts racing through his head.  
"I'm sorry I doubted you. You've always treated me well. And I'm really thankful for that. It's just that sometimes, I... I don't know..."

"I know you miss your mother, Merlin, and I know that I can't be a substitute for her. But I'm always here if you need me" Edwin's voice was calming, luring him back into a familiar safety.

"Thank you" Merlin turned and left, his thoughts even more confused than before.

  


* * *

"Hey, I brought you dinner" Merlin said as he carefully kicked the door close behind him.

He pulled the chair up to the small bed Arthur was lying on and set the bowl of stew down on it. Then he helped Arthur, who was struggling to sit up.

Arthur eyed the food suspiciously for a moment before he took an experimental sniff and decided:  
"That's disgusting. Who could possibly eat this? The state it is in, I'm not sure it's fit for _anyone_."

"Well, there _is_ nothing else" Merlin huffed annoyed. Every time he brought Arthur food he had to go through this conversation.

"How can you know that if you didn't look? You found edible food just yesterday, all you have to do is go and look for it" Arthur claimed insistently.

"Well, that's because..." - Because he had given his own food to Arthur. Arthur was right. The food wasn't exactly great and after some arguing and a pout Merlin hadn't been able to deny Arthur anything. Then after Edwin had denied better food for their prisoner, he had brought his own food ration to Arthur. But he had to be careful not to get caught doing that.  
"Listen, we can't exactly go grocery shopping while we're holding the son of one of Britain's most powerful men hostage."

"But at least you could take care that I don't starve to death. I'm sure my father wouldn't pay any ransom, if you get me killed" Arthur countered.  
"Lucky for you we don't want a ransom. Now eat, 'cause it won't do you any good to be weak during the tests because you're hungry but too stubborn to eat... Oh, fuck!"

Merlin's wide eyed look of realization at what he just said was almost endearing, Arthur thought, if it weren't for _what_ he just told him. The change of mood in the room was almost physically noticeable, the light-hearted teasing from earlier gone. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the panic bubbling in his chest.

"So, there are going to be more _tests_? They are going to inject me with whatever it was again? They are...?" Arthur was taking fast, pausing neither to breathe nor to wait for Merlin to answer.

"Shut up, okay" the anger made Merlin's voice rough. He felt helpless and desperately confused. Couldn't Arthur see that he was getting Merlin into trouble by making him want to help Arthur?  
"I don't even know half of what they're doing to you, I probably shouldn't even know this. It's not like they're going to tell me things like that."

Arthur paused, shocked at Merlin's outburst.  
"Okay, then tell me what you do know?" he said calmly.

"Why should I do that? You're not on my side! You would hand me over to your people without so much as a second thought" Merlin's voice was getting louder with each word, fueling Arthur's own anger at the boy's words.

"You're not _like_ them!" he yelled.

"I am! I'm a sorcerer, _just_ like them. You've seen me do magic, how can you still say I'm different?"

"I like you, okay? You're a nice person. Probably not the smartest but I can see that you'd never do anything to hurt somebody" Arthur's voice was calm, taking all the fight out of both of them.

"What?" Merlin breathed, shocked. But Arthur only gave him a sly smirk.

Merlin carefully sat down next to Arthur on the small bed. "Eat" he murmured and nodded his head at the food he had brought with him earlier.

"It's cold and still disgusting" Arthur replied but without any heat. He looked up startled when Merlin sighed and swept his hand over the the plate. The cold stew had been turned into a few sandwiches.

"What the hell?" Arthur was gaping at him. "But... You healed me! You're Stitcher! You can't..."

"Guess you were right about me being different" Merlin said softly. He stretched his hand out again, this time his palm turned upwards. The bowl, now filled with sandwiches, floated slowly towards them.

"What else can you do?" Arthur asked half mortified, half curious. Carefully, he took one of the sandwiches.

"It's kinda complicated" Merlin admitted but then he began to explain himself - not without an certain air of self confidence - "I've been able to move things with my mind long before I could talk. It wasn't until I came here and met Edwin, that I noticed that I was different: I've been helping him with his work, I saw him heal people. Then one day I accidentally cut myself and... well, it healed. I told Edwin about it, and he had me try to learn other abilities as well. Lady Helen taught me, she's a Shifter."

"But... that's not possible" he took an experimental bite of the sandwich and fought to swallow and not to gag. "That's horrible!"

"Well," Merlin stated with a smirk, "I can change what it looks like not what it is."

"Still cold stew" Arthur noted with a sad expression, "I should have known, you're a sorcerer not an alchemist."

"I'm working on it" Merlin replied good-natured.

"Smart-ass!" Arthur grinned. "No seriously, you can just learn magical abilities?"

"Well, it takes some time to learn. And I'm not nearly as good with the skills as a person who was born with it" Merlin admitted.

"That's... well, kind of fascinating to be honest but with the wrong people it could be really dangerous" Arthur answered thoughtfully.

"I know."

The silence that followed was comfortable. They were both lost deep in their thoughts.

"Tell me about this village" Arthur prompted after long moments.  
Merlin sighed but then began:  
"It's a refuge for magical people. Most of it is underground, every entrance is hidden so that only a sorcerer could find it.  
Everybody who is living here is magical and is hiding from your father and what he does to people like us. Tauren is the leader of this village. When I came here about two years ago, he took me in, like most of the others. Edwin, he's our physician. I live with him now..." he trailed off, uncertainly.

"But why are you here? I mean, where is your family? They didn't kick you out or something after they found out, did they?" Arthur asked carefully.

"No" Merlin was quiet for a moment, not meeting Arthur's eyes. "I came here after my mother died. I never knew my father."

"Shit" Arthur breathed quietly, "I'm sorry."

He shifted himself around so that he was sitting with his back to the wall, now able to rest his weight against it. Merlin moved next to him, their shoulders almost touching.  
"You're still hurting, are you?"

"No" Arthur lied but obviously it was not very convincing.

"Liar" Merlin's accusation was soft and teasing.

"You said it yourself, you can't heal me. So there's no use in complaining about it" Arthur sighed.

"No, not with magic anyways but even people like us know how to use pain killers" Merlin grinned, then got up to fetch them.

Merlin returned after a few minutes with a glass of water and two aspirin and handed them to Arthur before sliding back onto the bed.

"Edwin wants me to take a blood sample from you to check a few things" he admitted and revealed a syringe that had been hidden in his hand.  
After Arthur had swallowed the pills, he raised a silent, questioning eyebrow.

"If the injection they gave you is taking effect" Merlin clarified. He made a move to grab Arthur's arm but he jerked away.

"You're _not_ taking a blood sample from me!" Arthur eyed Merlin warily.

"Relax, I'm a med student" he then took hold of Arthur's arm again.

"You're studying medicine? Really?" Arthur hadn't once thought about the fact that a sorcerer might actually have a job, like everybody else. It seemed like a surreal concept.

"Yes, really. What? You thought I was pulling rabbits out of my hat and entertaining kids at birthday parties?" Merlin asked with a smirk.

"Um, something like that" Arthur admitted reluctantly. All of the sorcerers he had encountered before had all more or less fitted into the category of people who robbed innocents in back alleys or made their money with crime in general. The same impression he had gotten from everyone he had seen in this village, everyone except Merlin.

"Well, I'll have you know that I'm perfectly capable of taking a blood sample" he held the small syringe, now filled, up for Arthur to see and grinned his bright smile.

"Hey, how did you...?" Arthur looked surprised at the crook of his arm.

"Sorcerer, remember?" Merlin laughed and left the room, leaving an astounded Arthur behind. A slow smile began to spread over his face. There was something about Merlin. He just couldn't quite put his finger on it.

  


* * *

  


* * *

The serum he had been injected with had taken no effect, Arthur knew as soon as a man, barely a few years older than him, stormed into the room, he was being held in and hauled him up and out into the hallway. It was late evening, he had been trying to sleep in hope of easing the painful pounding in his chest. The painkillers Merlin had brought him earlier had made very little difference.

He was brought into the same room as the day before: A clean, sterile hospital-like room, the bright light reflecting from the white wall hurting his eyes, the reeking smell of disinfectant in the air, the tingling of strong magic ever present.  
The man who had brought him in, shoved him onto a infirmary bed and strapped him down. When the syringe was shoved into his vein this time, it had nothing of the gentleness Merlin had used. Arthur stifled a pained yell by biting on his lower lip, he was sure it would be very sore by the time today's treatment was over.

"So, are you going to tell me what it is you're trying to do with my DNA? It's not the Cure you've been injecting me with, I know that much" Arthur forced an arrogant smile onto his face, shutting out any pain he was feeling.

"That little shit," the man began swearing under his breath, "good for nothing, can't even be trusted to keep his fucking mouth shut."

'Merlin' Arthur realized, then he grinned: "Ah, I take it you don't like Merlin very much?"  
This was something he was good at. Familiar territory, not the strange uncertainty he felt when he was dealing with Merlin. He had been trained to get the greatest possible amount of information out of a situation like this.

"No, I _don't_ like him. He's such a weak, pathetic looser. If Tauren hadn't taken him in he'd be dead by now. But that little bastard isn't even grateful for that. No, he goes around making all theses ridiculous demands... thinking he can save the world or something... if he knew what is really..." he was cut off as the door opened and the man Arthur had met the very first day entered. The scars on his face didn't seem any less threatening now than they had then.

"Valiant?" the man walked up to the bed Arthur was lying on, his eyes fixed on him. Valiant threw Arthur a last dark glance before walking out, muttering about all the things he'd do once he had his magic back.

"You didn't happen to inject him with the Cure I had with me, did you?" he asked a thought forming in his head.

"Of course I did, it's the only way to determine how long it's efficient" Edwin answered absently minded, all the while continuing to prepare his medical supplies.

"You mind telling me what you're trying to do to me?" Arthur asked. But this time his question was ignored as the man beckoned forward a small figure, who had been standing in the dark doorway forward.  
"Merlin, come on in" the words made Arthur freeze, he felt like his body had been dumped into a bucket of ice water.

Merlin entered the room slowly, his eyes never meeting Arthur's.

Arthur barely registered what happened to him, his eyes followed Merlin's shy, insecure movements. He noticed the way Merlin seemed to want to make this as easy as possible for him. His hands were gentle, his eyes calming, the feeling of uneasiness banned for the moment. Arthur was injected again, this time it didn't hurt nearly as much as the first time. The soft, golden glow in Merlin's eyes told Arthur, that it was his doing.

"What's happening?" Arthur asked quickly, seizing quickly the opportunity when Merlin was, for one moment, not under the constant surveillance by the other man.

"I don't know. Edwin doesn't tell me much" Merlin leaned close and whispered, his eyes darting every few seconds across the room to check if the scientist was still occupied with the microscope he was leaning over.

" _He_ is Edwin? I imagined him more... you know... nice?" Arthur's voice was equally low.

Merlin sighed, "He is," he defended him but it was lacking heat, Arthur could tell. "It's just that... we're running out of time. They're searching for you, close."

Arthur knew that the thought of his father's people searching for him; the fact that they were close enough that the sorcerer's were worried, should make him feel relieved, anticipatory. But it also meant that he was running out of time too. He was running out of time to find out everything about this secret hideout, ways to find it, ways to destroy it. But most of all, he was running out of time to get to know Merlin. And Arthur was getting the dreadful feeling that he would be found soon.

"When they find me, you have to come with me" he decided quickly.

"What?" Merlin looked at him shell-shocked. But before Arthur could answer, Edwin turned his attention back to them. His eyes practically glowed as they fixed on Arthur.

"It's permanent right?" his voice was low, the venom obvious in his voice and his whole body. "The Cure, is it permanent?"

He was coming closer his hand coming up, outstretched in front of Arthur's chest. He felt the fear flood his body, he sensed Merlin freezing beside him, his breathing shallow and quick.

The quiet ''yes'' had barely left his lips before Arthur felt the pain rip through his body.

  


* * *

"Arthur? Please wake up, please" Arthur felt cool hands touch his face, stroking his skin. It took endless effort to open his eyes and much more not to close them again at the bright light.

"Arthur?" the relief was evident in Merlin's scared voice.

"...hurts..." Arthur whispered. Even this one word seemed to require more strength than he had.

"Shhh, it's alright. I know but... Arthur, I can't heal you!" the blind panic was back in Merlin's voice.

"...cure?..." an awful thought was forming in Arthur's head.

"No. No, he didn't inject me with the cure, he wouldn't dare to, not after he found out it's permanent" Merlin assured him. "I think it's what he injected you with..."

Arthur heard Merlin take a deep breath before continuing, "I found something out. Something horrible... I didn't know, Arthur. I swear I didn't know."  
Another shaky breath, his hand fisted in Arthur's shirt.  
"They said you could change your father's view on us, they said he would understand us and leave us alone. But they... they want to turn you into a sorcerer... they..." Merlin's breath was coming in small gasps, his voice filled with fear and horror.

"That's not possible" Arthur muttered. "There is no way to _make_ someone a sorcerer."

"Edwin found one, the serum he injected you with."

  


* * *

  


* * *

Arthur's head was spinning, from the serum and the thoughts racing faster through his mind than he could grasp any of them. He could feel the warm humid air around them, making it hard to breathe, sticking their clothing to their skin. The rain was still dropping heavily outside, providing a constant noise level to drown out the silence between them. His glance fell onto the small ball Merlin had curled himself into, his back pressing against Arthur's thigh. They had been sitting like that for hours, without one word spoken.

Arthur reached out a careful hand, touching Merlin's back. He could feel the heat of his body through the sweaty shirt.  
"Merlin?" his voice was rough with emotion and the lack of use. He didn't receive a response.  
"Merlin, talk to me."

"What do you want me to say?" Merlin paused a moment as if trying to find the right words, "I've been a idiot, I was fucking stupid. I trusted these people, I thought they were my friends, my family. But... but you were right..."  
Finally, finally he turned around and faced Arthur, his eyes were red and swollen, the trails of tears still visible on his cheeks.

"You were right, I'm not like them" his voice was steady, firm.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Arthur asked carefully. He wasn't sure if he wanted to hear the answer to his question. Merlin had sounded so sure of himself it almost seemed threatening.

"They never wanted for non-magical and magical people to be equal, they wanted for magical people to be better than non-magical people. It's..." he paused a moment. When Merlin's eyes met his Arthur could see determination shine in his bright blue eyes.  
"It's the same thing your father is doing" Merlin's voice wasn't full of heated anger as it had been moments before, it was almost sad.  
"We need to end this. There has to be a way we can stop them both."

"Merlin, there is no way. Maybe... maybe sorcerers and non-magical people just aren't meant to live together peacefully. Maybe that's just the way it is, and we have to accept that."

"Maybe nobody has ever tried"  
With those words, Merlin leaned forward and pressed a kiss against Arthur's lips. It was quick and before Arthur had time to react Merlin was already pulling back.

"Sorry, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have..." Merlin was cut off as Arthur gently pulled him close again. When they kissed this time it was soft and their lips moved carefully against each other. They inched closer slowly as if afraid to disturb the spell they both seemed to be under.

Arthur felt more than heard Merlin whimper when he pushed his fingers through the mob of dark hair.  
"So soft" he murmured against Merlin's lip.

"Arthur, please" was the low response, almost desperate.

Arthur felt like those words had broken a barrier inside him. A need so strong it took his breath away flooded his body, taking over control. His hands were shaking as they struggled with Merlin's t-shirt. They barely parted long enough to strip the t-shirt from Merlin's body before they were once again kissing.

Everything seemed to happen in a haze, Merlin was barely aware that they had moved to lie back down on the bed. He let out a breathy moan when Arthur pulled him even closer and brought their hips together. The sweet friction as they moved against each other.  
There were hands stroking up and down his back, touching everywhere, urging him into a slow torturous rhythm.

"Merlin..." he panted wetly against his lips, his neck and his chest, everywhere he could reach, "God, Merlin..."  
Arthur rolled them over, hovering for a moment over Merlin before pressing flush against him again, ignoring the pain that spread through his chest at the sudden movement.

"I need... I want..."

"I know..."

  
Their hands worked frantically to get each other out of their clothing. When Merlin finally pulled Arthur free of his sweater, he let out a shocked hiss simultaneous with Arthur's pained moan.  
"Fuck, I didn't know it looked that bad" Merlin whispered, frozen in place. He didn't dare to move but he couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from Arthur's chest either. It was completely covered in black and blue bruises.  
He gently turned them, so that Arthur was flat on his back again and then placed his hands over Arthur's chest. Closing his eyes Merlin concentrated on his magic, feeling it stream through him. He pushed at it, trying to force it into Arthur but it hit the same invisible barrier as it had the time before.  
"It's not working."

Arthur pulled Merlin down again, a hand on his neck guiding him, bringing him closer until their lips met. Their kiss was gentle, careful. Their tongues met, stroking against each other in a lazy movement.  
Arthur thrust his hips against Merlin's, brushing their groins together. He could feel that Merlin was just as hard as he was inside his too tight jeans, he could feel the impatience in his moans and the small movements of his hips.

"It's fine... just... Merlin, please... need to feel you..."

Merlin fisted a hand in Arthur's sweat slick hair, and again gave into Arthur's murmured pleadings.

Arthur gave a relieved groan as Merlin's fingers began to work on his zipper, freeing them both from their jeans and finally their boxers.  
Their hard cocks brushed together as Merlin slowly lowered his hips against Arthur's, forcing another moan from him.

They set an agonizingly slow rhythm, Merlin holding Arthur's body trapped, not allowing him to move.  
"You won't hurt me" Arthur panted, desperately wanting to touch Merlin, to move against him.  
"No, you'll hurt yourself" Merlin's lips were mere inches away from his, still Arthur tried to lift himself up, to get closer again, "Which is why you'll lie back and do nothing" the promise of what was about to come was soft in his voice.

A wicked grin appeared on Merlin's face and seconds later his eyes flashed gold. Arthur gave a surprised gasp, not just because he had never seen any other sorcerer's eyes do that but because he felt something press him down into the mattress, wrapping around his chest, his arms and holding him in place.  
Then Merlin started a trail of soft, feather-like kisses down Arthur's chest, mindful of his injuries.  
"Merlin" a needy plea escaped Arthur as Merlin slowed down his kisses. But he just chuckled softly at Arthur's exclamations and finally shifted down further to press a kiss against the head of Arthur's cock. Merlin's lips wrapped almost hesitantly around his cock, taking him in further. He tightened his lips, adding pressure to the throbbing heat.

Merlin gave a soft hum in his throat, his tongue pressing against the slit, his cheeks hollowing, bringing Arthur closer and closer to the edge but never letting him fall over.  
Arthur was desperately gasping for air, the need to move into Merlin's warm mouth, the need to touch him was almost overwhelming.

Arthur whimpered softly when Merlin pulled himself away, sliding up Arthur's body, pressing a messy kiss against his parted lips.  
"I want you... God, Arthur... I want you, need you... please, Arthur"

"Yes... God, Merlin. Yes..."

Merlin gave a low whimper, and Arthur felt the magic holding him in place shift, loosening enough to allow him to move. His arms encircled Merlin's waist, pulling him closer.  
They kissed again, only breaking apart to breathe but never separating too long or too far.  
"Merlin..." Arthur breathed before pressing another kiss against his swollen lips, "Merlin... want to... I want to be inside you"

Merlin rested their foreheads together, both panting fast and shallow, their breaths mingling between them.  
"Yeah..."

Arthur saw Merlin's eyes flash golden for a moment and he could feel the magic crackling in the air around them. Arthur gave a throaty laugh when he saw that Merlin was now holding a small tube with lube and a condom in his hands.  
Arthur raised a questioning an eyebrow but was only met with an amused grin and a "See, magic is all kinds of useful".

Merlin lifted himself up on his knees, straddling Arthur's lap. He leaned down and whispered huskily into Arthur's ear, while closing Arthur's fingers around the small bottle of lube -  
"... want to feel you, Arthur."

Arthur opened the cap, his hands shaking with lust, he slicked his fingers evenly with the cold gel, then moved his hand to stroke teasingly down between Merlin's buttocks, gently pushing in. When Merlin began to moan encouragingly into his ear, Arthur scissored his fingers to stretch and widen him until Merlin was pushing back against him, left wanting more.  
"Please, Arthur."

The few seconds it took Merlin to fumble for the condom and roll it onto Arthur's cock, seemed far too long for them. But finally Merlin closed his hand around Arthur's cock, lining him up and pushing back. He moaned at the feel of Arthur sliding into him, the soft pleasure as he was stretched wide open. He stilled a moment, letting his body slowly relax.

Arthur gasped surprised as he felt Merlin's tight heat around him. His fingers dug into Merlin's skin in a desperate attempt to stop his own orgasm.  
"Fuck!"

"Hell, yes" Merlin chuckled against Arthur's lips. He started to move, taking Arthur deeper with every movement of his hips.

Merlin lifted himself up, bracing his hands carefully against Arthur's shoulders, small moans falling from his lips as they moved. Arthur ran a hand down Merlin's sweaty back, pushing his hips slowly up, countering Merlin's rhythm.

Merlin's breathy moans brought him closer and closer to the edge, his pace was only fluttering briefly when Arthur wrapped a hand around his cock and started jerking him with steady, fast strokes.

Arthur ran a hand down Merlin's back, spreading through the sweat pooling in the curve of his spine. His cheeks were flushed, his eyes wide with lust locked onto his own, strands of dark hair were framing his face. Arthur couldn't help but think how utterly beautiful Merlin looked like this.

A broken "Arthur!" was the only warning he got before Merlin came, his muscles contracting around him, bringing Arthur off as well.

Merlin collapsed into a soft, warm heap on top of Arthur. It was only when Arthur gave him a gentle nudge that, Merlin moved off him to dispose the condom. He was curled up next to Arthur again just seconds later. Merlin rested his head on Arthur's shoulder and snuggled deeper into his body's warmth, pulling the blanket around them with a flash of golden eyes.

It didn't take long for them to fall asleep.

  


* * *

  


* * *

Arthur woke to the feeling of a warm body curled around him, short hair tickling his cheek and an arm possessively spread over his chest. His _healed_ chest, it took him a moment to notice the absence of the bruises. His eyes drifted over the sorcerer sleeping peacefully at his side and he couldn't help the small smile that touched his lips.

'This is the part where I should freak out', thought Arthur. Not only had he slept with a man, he had slept with a sorcerer. And associating with the enemy wasn't exactly an easily forgotten sin in his father's books.  
But Arthur felt strangely content.

He pressed a kiss to Merlin's forehead when he felt him move, slowly waking up.  
"Morning"

"Hmmm..." was the sleepy answer he received. With a laugh he turned to his side, taking a pliant Merlin into his arms.  
A soft "...not supposed to move..." was murmured into his skin as he snuggled closer.

"I'm fine."

"No, you're... huh?" Merlin sat up and ran his hands across Arthur's chest, surprised and visibly taken aback.  
"I didn't do that... Arthur, what if someone else was in here? What if they saw us?"

"Merlin, don't be ridiculous. You tried to heal me twice last night, maybe the serum they gave me just slowed down the progress".

Arthur kissed Merlin gently and pulled him down to lie next to him again. As they fell asleep once more neither of them noticed the slightly ajar door closing.

  


* * *

"It's true" Nimueh said as she strode into small room where a few of the villages people had gathered. Her eyes glided over Valiant propped up in the corner of the sofa, Edwin discussing heatedly with Tauren.  
As soon as her words registered every conversation was cut off. Everybody turned to look at her.

"Arthur Pendragon is completely healed, and the protection shield is gone" a smirk appeared on her face as she continued, "also it seems that we have a love affair between those two on our hands."

"What?", Tauren's voice cut the silence that had followed her statement. His blue eyes bore into hers, and his open mouthed look of shock did nothing for that ridiculous bread he had been growing lately, Nimueh decided.

"That can't be true" Edwin's voice betrayed his doubts as he spoke , "Merlin is one of us, he wouldn't betray us like that."

Valiant leaped to his feet and screamed: "I'm going to kill him, I'm going to fucking kill him!"

"We have bigger concerns right now" Tauren interjected, silencing the room full of people, who had erupted into hushed chatter at the news, "The whole village is swarming with Uther Pendragon's men. Lady Helen can only hold them off for so long, and she's getting weaker by the minute. Once her images vanish it'll only be a matter of minutes before they find the entrance."  
"Edwin, how are the experiments coming along? Any success? What did you find out about the new Cure? When will you be able to reverse it's effects on Valiant?"

"It's not looking good, I'm afraid. I tried everything I could think off."

"Try harder. Valiant is one of our best warriors, we'll need him" the authority in Tauren's voice made it clear that he wouldn't take it too kindly if anyone failed him.

"You want to fight Uther Pendragon?" Nimueh interrupted, her voice made her doubts about this plan of action clear.  
"I thought we had a deal with him?"

  


* * *

"What do you think we should do about Merlin?" Nimueh asked, walking through the corridors with Tauren.

"Nothing."

"We have to do _something_. I mean, we know that he found a way to prevent our serum from working and we don't know what else he's telling the prisoner about us."

"Uther Pendragon won't tolerate any sorcerer near him or his family, not even if his son is fucking him" Tauren replied his voice laced with hatred.

"I know Merlin, he won't run away from here so easily. His mother asked him to stay here before she died. He won't break his promise to her.", she voiced her doubts.

"Then we have to make him want to leave this place behind more than anything else."

"So, what do we do?"

"Make him think we're planning to kill him and his precious Arthur.", Tauren smirked.

A wide smile appeared on her face, "I can't wait."

"Patience, give them a few days to feel safe first." he had already turned around the corner leading to his quarters when he added "And talk to Sophia"

  


* * *

Arthur wrapped his arms around Merlin's slim waist, pulling him down onto bed again when he tried to get up. Merlin let himself be lured into a kiss but reluctantly pulled away again after.

They had spend the last few days lazing in bed, exchanging kisses and gentle touches, the nights had been filled with sex. Merlin had been nearly all the time with Arthur. But nobody had seemed to be suspicious yet, so he was determined to use every free minute he had.

"I have to go" he murmured between the soft kisses Arthur continued to press against his lips.  
Merlin pulled away and out of Arthur's reach, knowing fully well that the other man would be too lazy to actually get up. He pulled his jeans and t-shirt on, while Arthur still lay on the bed, a fake pout on his face.  
"I'll have to get food for our prisoner, can't have you starving" Merlin explained, his eyes twinkling with humor before he slipped out of the door.

He walked down the corridor towards the kitchen with a small smile on his lips. This thing with Arthur, Merlin didn't dare to name it just yet but it seemed to work out pretty well. Arthur was a wonderful lover and Merlin didn't dare to imagine what would be happening if they were found out.

By the time he arrived in the kitchen, his mind was occupied again with what exactly he was going to do once he had gotten them something to eat and then had successfully dragged Arthur back into bed.  
So at first he didn't even notice the low voices talking in the room next to him, he only took notice when he heard his name being spoken.

"I'm not sure if this is the right way to approach the situation" Merlin recognized Edwin's voice easily.

"It's not like we have a choice. Merlin made his choice and it's _not_ us" the second voice was harder to identify but eventually Merlin could make out Tauren's voice. It was laced with disgust.  
"We have to do it tonight" Tauren continued, "Nimueh says she has everything ready. I just need you to do your part and let us take care of the rest. Will the drug work?"

"What I've found in Arthur Pendragon's blood is remarkably close to Merlin's. So what was actually blocking our serum from working wasn't Merlin but what is in his blood" Edwin explained, ignoring the question he had been asked altogether.

"That's not saving him, the boy will die and so will the young Pendragon."

Merlin gasped in shock at Tauren's words, then he ran from the kitchen, knocking over a chair in his rush to leave.  
In his panic Merlin almost tripped over his legs and practically fell into the room, his eyes immediately searching out Arthur.

"Took you long en... Merlin?" Arthur had looked up when he heard the door open but he paused mid-sentence, taking in the sight of Merlin who was breathing heavily, his eyes wide with shock and still glowing golden from when he had slammed the door shut and locked only seconds ago.

Merlin stood just frozen in the middle of the room, not reacting, not reacting to any of Arthur's attempts at getting him to talk. When Arthur finally took him by the arm and guided him to sit down on the bed, he let himself be taken into Arthur's embrace. The small, sporadic shivers Arthur could feel run through Merlin's body indicated that the other man still seemed to be processing something.

"I don't understand it" Merlin whispered, his face burrowed into Arthur's shoulder. "It just doesn't make any sense... Why would they do that?"

"Merlin" Arthur's voice was careful, deliberately soothing. "What happened?"

"They are going to kill us..." Merlin's voice sounded so disbelieving and so scared that it took Arthur a moment to understand the meaning behind the words.

"What?!" Arthur forcefully turned Merlin around, lifting his chin to made Merlin look at him. Arthur took in the look of confusion and hurt mixed with blank horror on Merlin's face and knew that it was true.

  


* * *

Half an hour later Arthur was still pacing up and down in the small room, and Merlin was still sitting on the bed in shock.

"So, let's start from the beginning" Arthur started for the umpteenth time. "We know this much - I was brought here because they wanted to test some kind of magic Cure, that was supposed to turn me into a sorcerer. It didn't work because there is something in my blood that blocks it. This something is in your blood too, only that you are already a sorcerer, so... that doesn't even make sense!"

Merlin watched as Arthur ran a hand frustratingly through his hair. They had talked this through numerous times and it still didn't make any sense. And they still didn't have a plan for what they were going to do when Tauren's plan came into action. They only had a few more hours.

"That's it!" Arthur exclaimed after what felt like an eternity, "I've got an idea!"

  


* * *

"It feels like we're waiting for our execution" Merlin whispered, not daring to lift his voice. His head was resting against Arthur's shoulder, their arms wrapped around each other's waists.

"It will work" Arthur replied equally low, running his fingers through Merlin's hair, pulling him closer. "Everything will be fine, you'll see."

Merlin pressed a last kiss to Arthur's lips when he heard the key turning in the lock.

"Come with me" Edwin's voice held no emotion, no sign that he had any regrets about what he was going to do. Merlin took a shuddering breath, trying to fight down the hurt and betrayal, threatening to take over his mind again. It seemed unbelievable cruel that it would be Edwin who lead him into his death. Now he could only pray that Arthur's plan worked and that they were able to escape just in time.  
Merlin still remembered the day he had sworn never to use his magic against one of his own people. But he was about to do just that, and not against any sorcerer but against the man he had become to think of as family, as a farther.

Arthur's hand slipped into his own, calming him and guiding him gently. Mentally he went through all the steps of their plan again.

At first Merlin didn't even notice it, the familiar corridors of the underground maze still around him as they walked. It was only when they came to a halt in front of a door he had never seen before that he notice that they were in the outer parts of the village.

"Edwin? Where are we going?" the fear was evident in Merlin's voice.

Arthur's hand squeezed his but Merlin could feel his questioning glance on him.

Edwin only answered once he had ushered them both inside another dark, cold corridor and the door was safely closed behind them.

"Trust me, Merlin. It's best for everyone this way" Edwin started to walk into the darkness.

Merlin threw Arthur a desperate glance but then they followed him. Their plan wasn't going to work.

It wasn't long before they stopped in front of another door, thicker this time. It was only when Edwin opened it, Merlin and Arthur could see that it was leading outside. The night sky was clear and the air cold as they stepped through the door. Arthur took a deep breath, appreciating to be outside again after being locked up for the better part of a week. Merlin stood beside him, silently trying to take in what was happening.

"Edwin?" Merlin asked again, this time confusion was coloring his voice.

"You have to go, Merlin. I can no longer protect you, not this time" Edwin turned to him, gently laying his hands on Merlin's shoulders, "Uther Pendragon's people are on the other side of the woods but Merlin you can't tell them about this place, promise me that."

At Merlin's nod, he continued, "I wish I could do more, I wish I could help you. But this is too big for me, this is too big for all of us... Merlin, you'll fulfill a great destiny one day, and I want you to know that I'm proud of you no matter what."

Merlin drew Edwin into a crushing hug, cherishing those last moments he had with his mentor.  
"But what's going to happen to you when they find out?"

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Now go!"

  


* * *

"You made the right choice" Tauren's hand rested on Edwin's shoulder. How long the other man had been standing behind him, Edwin couldn't say but he could no longer make out the outlines of Merlin and Arthur disappearing into the distance.

"I sent him running to his own death" Edwin whispered, his voice husky.  
But Tauren only nodded satisfied.

  


* * *

  


* * *

By the time they stopped on top of a small hill just outside the bounds of the village, Merlin was out of breath.

Arthur's closed his arms around Merlin's waist from behind, holding him close to his own body as they took one last look at what used to be Merlin's home.  
"Arthur, I can't loose my magic" Merlin's voice was quiet but determined.

"Don't worry, I'm gonna find a way."

"No, you don't understand. If I can't use magic, what have I got? I'm just a nobody and always will be. If I can't use magic, I might as well die" Merlin had stepped away from Arthur, his eyes glinting with suppressed anger.

"Do you trust me, if I tell you that I know of a sorceress that lived inside walls of my father's house for more than fifteen years? Unharmed" Arthur took a step closer to Merlin, holding out a tentative hand.

Merlin eyed him warily but then he took Arthur's hand and let himself be pulled close again, resting his head on Arthur's shoulder.

  


* * *

"It's not much further" Merlin told him as they stumbled through the brushwood, dodging trees they could barely make out in the darkness.  
Arthur held on to Merlin’s hand tightly. They had been holding hands ever since Merlin had fallen over some tree roots for the third time in a row. And Merlin had cursed about not being able to uses magic to lighten the way but Arthur had insisted that it was far too dangerous to draw attention to them.

It wasn't long before they reached the edge of the forest. While Merlin turned and took one last glance that what used to be his home, Arthur was looking in the other direction. Merlin followed his eyes.  
He could see the camp Arthur's father's people had set up at the foot of the village.

They were safe, Arthur felt relief floating him. He was just about to start walking down to the camp when something caught his eye. All of the men were heavily armed. Why would his father send teams out on a rescue mission with enough weapons to fight a war?

"Wait here, I'll be right back" before Merlin had time to respond, Arthur had disappeared into the darkness.

Arthur slowly walked down the small path that was barely visible in the darkness surrounding him. He froze when he heard the cracking of someone stepping onto a branch. Arthur waited for a few more moments but he couldn't hear another sound. Just as he continued walking, thinking that it had been just a deer that he had spooked, he heard a rustling sound behind him. When he stopped again, he heard a loud crack behind him, closely followed by cursing.

"Merlin?" Arthur asked into the darkness behind him.

"Um... no?"  
A small grin spread across Arthur's face. He turned around just in time to see Merlin poke his head from the tree he had been hiding behind.

"I thought I asked you to _wait_ "

"I didn't say _yes_ " Merlin said defiantly, stepping up next to Arthur.  
Arthur gave a long-suffering sigh but didn't say anything else as they made their way down to the camp together.

Arthur stopped Merlin, putting a hand on his chest as they reached the camp. He motioned for him to stay behind but Merlin just shook his head and batted Arthur's hand away.

"Merlin, wait over there!" Arthur whispered lowly. He pointed to the tree line they had just left behind.

"No" Merlin replied with no less stubbornness in his voice.

"Merlin, something is very wrong here" Arthur explained, his voice annoyed "and I can't concentrate on figuring out what it is when I have to worry about you getting caught."

"Alright" Merlin turned around and walked away, not looking back at Arthur.

Arthur sighed as he watched Merlin disappear into the darkness.

Just when Merlin was starting to think that Arthur wouldn't come back, he heard a cracking in the trees behind him. He turned around, ready to bolt any moment but stopped at hearing a soft "Merlin? Where are you?"

"Arthur?" a hand closed around his wrist and Arthur stepped into his view.

"Change of plans" Arthur was slightly out of breath. "We can't go to that camp. My father didn't send out recon teams, if we go down there they will kill you."

  


* * *

It was almost dawn by the time they stumbled out of the forest it into a small neighboring village. They had been walking the whole night and both were barely able to keep themselves upright.

"I need to make a call" said Arthur. He started off for a small phone box that was on the side off the empty road. He had already picked up the earpiece only to then turn to Merlin with a sheepish expression.  
"I don't have any money"

"Here" Merlin said, reaching into his pockets and produced a few coins.

Merlin stood leaned against the open door of the phone booth, watching Arthur dial when a thought hit him.  
"Umm... Arthur, it's not even five a.m."

But judging from Arthur's astounded look someone had already picked up on the other line who was more aware of the time than them.

  


* * *

Merlin chuckled quietly while they walked to the single bus stop in the village.  
"So, _basically_ we have to take the bus to London, because your secretary's boyfriend told you to shove it and now you refuse to call again?"

" _No_ , it's not. It's much safer to take public transportation, if we don't want to be caught."

"Right."

They sat down huddled close together at the bus stop, shivering slightly from the cold and the mist of the early morning.  
Merlin pulled the hood of his sweater even further down around his face. He made a small sound of surprise and protest when Arthur tried to burrow his freezing nose against Merlin's neck.

"I hate your plan" Merlin murmured darkly.

They waited quietly until the bus finally arrived. Arthur was just about to get on the bus when he pulled Merlin back.  
"We don't have enough money."

But Merlin only grinned and dug a creased bus ticket from the back pocket of his jeans.

"You just used magic, didn't you?" Arthur asked as soon as they were seated in the back of the bus, appreciating the warmth of the bus, settling in with a content sigh.

"Yep" was the cheeky reply.

  


* * *

"You know this is crazy, right? I mean, why do I trust you so much when I don't even know you? For all I know you could have me sent to one of your creepy underground testing facilities" Merlin paused a moment in realisation, "That's what we did to you after all."

He's right, Arthur thought. They knew next to nothing about each other. And his logic, everything that he had been taught while growing up and everything he had seen over the years told him that trusting Merlin was a bad idea, that he should have handed him over to his father's people and not try to protect him.  
'Never forget, sorcerers are dangerous and evil. They mean nothing but harm to us. You cannot trust them' his father's words echoed through Arthur's mind.  
But there was just something about him, something that made Arthur want to trust him unconditionally.

"You're right" he said finally. Then at Merlin's horrified look he quickly clarified, " _Not_ about torturing you. But about not knowing each other."

"Well, then" Merlin grinned at him, visibly relieved, "tell me something about you."

"Umm..." Arthur shifted uncomfortable in the small plastic seat of the bus. "My father owns Camelot Laboratories, I've been working for him since my graduation" he paused, shooting Merlin a uncertain glance but the other man only gestured for him to continue.  
"I usually don't do this kind of job, I mean the field work kind. It's my job to do publicity work, deal with the press and our clients. I was actually just out here, trying to track sorcerers down, because I pissed my father off."

Merlin laughed.  
"Really? So it's no wonder you walked in our trap so easily. And here I thought I had to be afraid of you."

"Hey" Arthur shot him a wounded look, "I'll have you know that I was the leader of one of our best teams, while I was working for my father during highschool."

Merlin rolled his eyes at him, clearly not impressed.  
"Well, I guess we're lucky then that we had Watchers set on you."

"Come on, tell me something about you, then" Arthur prompted.

"Okay. Well, I grew up with my mom, went to highschool and college. After my mom died I decided to become a doctor. I'm in my final year of medschool right now. That's it pretty much. Well, you already know the rest."

Arthur looked at him a long moment before asking, "when did you first realize you could do magic?"

"My mom always said that I could move objects before I could talk. She had to come up with the strangest excuses so I wouldn't get caught..."

Arthur couldn't help but laugh at that the mental image of a baby Merlin with dozens of things swirling around his head.

"I had never met another sorcerer before I came to live with Edwin" Merlin continued. "I had never actually used my magic for anything other than tiding my room or stupid things like that...", he trailed off uncertainly when he saw Arthur's surprised look.

They sat quietly next to each other for the rest of the bus ride. Arthur thought about everything Merlin had told him again and again.

Merlin had never done anything that made him think he couldn't trust him. On the contrary, Merlin had given up his home for him, his family even. He had stood up against everything he had believed, trusting Arthur to keep him safe. If Arthur only were sure he could trust himself...

"I could fall for you..."  
Arthur traced a finger gently along the side of Merlin's face. "I think I already did."

The other boy was lying half against him, half on top of him, where he had fallen asleep hours ago. Arthur smiled when Merlin's eyes opened and he blinked up at him sleepily.  
"Hi."

"Hi" Arthur then leaned in and kissed him softly. He let his fingers run through Merlin's hair, angling his head to deepen the kiss. He felt Merlin's contented sigh against his lips as their tongues met.

Merlin's hands came up to rest against Arthur's shoulders, then he pulled him slowly closer until their bodies were squashed together as well as he could manage in the small room the bus seats left them. He could feel that Merlin was aroused, his pupils wide and dark.

Arthur pulled back, breathing heavily, and rested his forehead to Merlin's. When he opened his eyes Arthur could see a wicked grin on Merlin's face, seconds later he felt the teasing touch of his fingertips ghosting over the outline of his hard cock, clearly visible in his jeans.

Arthur let his eyes drift through the rows of the bus, thanks to the early hour it was almost empty. Two old women were chatting in the front and there was a guy with headphones a few rows in front of them; his music was loud enough for them to hear but no one had spared them a glance until now.

He pulled Merlin into another kiss and spread his legs just a bit wider to allow Merlin's hand better access and at the same time answering his unspoken question.

Merlin continued his teasing strokes before he opened Arthur's jeans, one button after another, his mouth swallowing the small sounds Arthur made. His tongue was coaxing soft moans from Arthur, his teeth nipped carefully at swollen lips.

Arthur gave a soft hiss of relief when Merlin finally finished unbuttoning his trousers and wriggled a hand inside, startling him when cold fingers closed around him.  
"Bastard" he whispered before kissing Merlin deeply.

"I wouldn't insult the guy who has a hand down your pants if I were you" Merlin murmured, accompanying his statement with a quick squeeze of his hand, causing Arthur's hips to buck into the contact.

Arthur let his hand slide down Merlin's side until he was palming his hard cock through his trousers. Merlin groaned into his mouth.  
"So close" he whispered.

Arthur had barely touched him at all when he felt Merlin come over his hand, pulling him over the edge as well as Merlin's fingers flexed around his cock. Their moans were muffled between their lips, both of them breathing heavily when they finally separated.

Merlin snuggled contented against him when Arthur leaned back against the seat. He heard Merlin chuckle lightly when he saw Arthur eying his sticky hand with a disgusted look.

"Here" Merlin tossed him a paper tissue that he had pulled from his pocket.

Arthur gave a small laugh. "I'm starting to see how magic can be useful."

  


* * *

  


* * *

"Where are we going?" Merlin asked.  
Arthur noticed for the first time since they started this insane journey, Merlin was asking about his plan.

After the bus had arrived in London Arthur had walked through the streets with single-minded determination, soon Merlin was ushered onto the tube too fast to figure out where it went.

"We have to get to a safe place before they get to us" Arthur answered without looking at him. His eyes were fixed outside the window, his expression carefully schooled.

"Before they get to us? Before who gets to us?" when he didn't receive an answer, he followed Arthur's line of sight.

"Who are they?" Merlin asked his voice shaking with panic, he nodded his head to half a dozen armed men running down the stairs to their platform, trying to reach their train.

Arthur let down a relieved breath as soon as the doors closed and the train set in motion.

"They are my father's people" Arthur said as if that alone explained everything. "I think they tracked my phone call."

"But why are we running from them?"

"They have orders to shoot you on sight" Arthur's voice was strained, the confession hung heavily in the air between them. "When I was in the camp at your village I overheard a conversation. My father had a mole in there somewhere, and it was obviously someone who didn't like you much."

"They're going to kill me?" Merlin's eyes were wide blown with fear, his pulse and breath were quickening. Arthur knew a panic attack wasn't going to help them right now.

"Merlin, listen to me. They won't kill..." he tried to make his voice sound calm and soothing as his arms circled Merlin's waist, pulling him close to his own body.

"But... you just said..." Merlin sounded small and lost, and although Arthur was pretty sure that he wasn't as vulnerable as he looked. It still made him want to protect Merlin. With his own life if necessary.

"I know. But I promise you, they won't hurt you. I won't let them, okay?"  
Only when Merlin nodded slowly did he continued, "right now we need to get past my father and find a solution for this mess."  
'And we need to escape Britain's best trained army' but he didn't say that out loud.

  


* * *

Merlin was all too soon lost again when Arthur continued to lead them through small, narrow alleys. They finally came to a stop in the backyard of an apartment building and Merlin watched in astonishment as Arthur cracked open the door with little effort. When he noticed Merlin staring, Arthur only shrugged.

They entered the house quietly, it looked old and more than a bit run down. The wallpaper was too dirty too see what color it had originally been and it was starting to peel off in places. The stairs they walked up were narrow and squeaked with every step they took.

Merlin was almost surprised when they reached the top floor and saw a single clean door, it looked so out of place in the hallway next to it.

Arthur swiped a key from under the doormat and unlocked the door. But when he tried to push the door open, he was met with the resistance of a safety chain.  
"Could you?" Arthur gestured to the door and seconds later he heard the rattling of the chain being released thanks to Merlin's help.

"I hate to admit it but we _do_ make a good team" Arthur grinned and finally pushed the door open to let them both in.

Merlin stepped into a dark corridor, Arthur closing the door behind them when he saw a shadow in the corner of his eye.  
He turned and saw _something_ flying at him but before he had time to react, a sharp pain went through him and he blacked out.

  


* * *

Merlin came round to the voice of a woman talking, at first he couldn't make out the words but then his senses slowly cleared up.  
"I'm so sorry. I didn't know... I mean, I just thought..."

" _Guinevere_ , he'll be fine" Arthur insisted, and from the tone of his voice Merlin could tell that it wasn't the first time he had said that.

"...not feeling so fine..." Merlin murmured, trying to force his eyes open, blinking rapidly to clear his sight.

"Hi, how are you feeling?" the woman whose voice he had heard asked. As she was slowly taking a clear shape Merlin could see that she was about his age, wearing a wide fitted, bright yellow sweater and had her curly hair tied back into a neat knot. She was smiling at him at little guiltily.

"Something hit me" Merlin remembered, trying to sit up. He felt Arthur's arms wind around his waist steadying him. He leaned back into the embrace only to yelp when something freezing cold was pressed against his temple.

"Hold still or you'll get a bump" Arthur told him. He held him firmly in place as Merlin tried to squirm away from the cold of the icepack on his head.

The woman sitting on the sofa next to them looked uncomfortable and flustered, her eyes were following the patterns her fingers kept drawing on her trousers. She looked up when she noticed Merlin staring.

"Hi, I'm Guinevere but most people call me Gwen. I'm Arthur's assistant" she gave him a shy smile.

"And she's also the one who knocked you out with a water bottle" Arthur added, laughing when Gwen blushed, and hurried to apologize.

"Oh... Well, I'm Merlin."

  


* * *

It didn't take long for Gwen to usher Arthur and Merlin into her bathroom, claiming that they clearly needed a shower. Merlin's arms were loaded with towels and clothes that were most likely too big for both of them.

Arthur kicked the door shut behind them, wrapping his arms around Merlin's middle. Causing him to first lean back against him with a content hum, then to drop the clothes and towels he'd been carrying to the floor.

He sighed and tilted his head to the side, exposing his neck as Arthur trailed gentle kisses along his ears, down till he reached his shoulder. Merlin turned in Arthur's arms, letting himself be stripped out of his sweater.

"Somehow I doubt that Gwen would be okay with us doing _that_ in here..." Merlin protested weakly. Arthur silenced him with a kiss and let any disagreement disappear completely when he unbuttoned Merlin's jeans.

Arthur backed Merlin slowly against the wall, pressing their bodies as closes together as they could get. His hands roamed over Merlin's pale skin, mapping every spot they could reach.

Merlin started to peel Arthur out of his clothes, all the while trying to move them through the small bathroom into the shower, never stopping their kiss.

They finally mad it and Arthur shut the shower stall behind them and turned the water on, causing them both to yelp when ice cold water hit their skin.

But as the water slowly warmed up, they pressed their mouths and bodies close again, kissing and touching, never breaking their contact.

Merlin moaned when he felt Arthur's hard cock against his own, their hips grinding together in a agonizing slow rhythm.

When Arthur closed his hand around both of their cocks, Merlin's hips bucked into the touch, craving the friction.

Their moans grew desperate, their breathing haggard. Arthur felt his body flex, his fingers digging into Merlin's skin as he came between their bodies. Merlin followed only moments later, whimpering softly and sagging heavily against him.

Gently kissing they stood with their arms around each other, steadying and just holding the other close, letting the warm water wash over them.

  


* * *

  


* * *

Merlin exited the bathroom of Gwen's apartment, his hair was still wet and the clothes he was wearing were way too big. He had already rolled up the sleeves of the pullover and the legs of the trousers but he still looked like he was drowning in them.

He followed the voices he could hear arguing from down the hallway but stopped abruptly in the doorway when he realized that Arthur and Gwen were arguing about him.

"... I can't believe you're even thinking that" Arthur stood in the middle of the small kitchen, his hands were on his hips and he was glowering angrily.

"Sir, I'm only saying that maybe you shouldn't put so much at stake for him, you've barely known him for a week" despite her words Gwen's voice was polite and almost humble.

"I trust him and if I have to go against my father for him then I will" there was a determination in Arthur's voice that made Merlin wonder how much Arthur actually was risking with bringing him here.

"You could loose everything. Is he worth _that_?"

"Yes"

Somehow Merlin thought barging in and kissing him senseless wasn't such a good idea right now, so he cleared his throat politely instead to alert them to his prescence.

"Merlin"  
He had expected Arthur to be embarrassed by what Merlin had heard him say but he didn't seem to mind at all.

  


* * *

Though Arthur had assured him multiple times that his plan was going to work just fine, Merlin was still not sure if 'offense is the best defense' was the right kind of plan for a situation like theirs. The sight of the building of Camelot Laboratories did nothing to ease his fears. It was a huge modern building, with security cameras everywhere. There were guards positioned at every door and Merlin was pretty sure that everybody inside already knew they were here, even though they were still about half a kilometer down the road. They were probably getting ready to shoot him once he sat a foot in the building.

"Merlin, will you calm down already?" Arthur's low voice right next to him made Merlin jump. Only when Arthur closed his hand around his, Merlin noticed that his fingers were trembling.

"Everything is going to be fine. Gwen is going to distract everyone, while you and I go down to the labs and get Gaius to help us. See? Nothing can go wrong"  
Arthur squeezed his fingers reassuringly when Merlin only stared back at him mutely.  
Arthur nodded to Gwen standing next to them. She mouthed a silent 'good luck' to Merlin, then started off in direction of the large building in front of them.

"Ready?"  
But Arthur didn't wait for Merlin to answer, dragging him along as he fell into a fast run. By the time they had reached the small door that would get them into the building, their breathing was fast and heavy, Merlin had his free hand pressed into his side and was stumbling blindly after Arthur's lead.

After running through a maze of corridors they finally made it into the small lab, almost falling in as an elder man turned to stare at them with wide eyes. He didn't move for endless seconds, then the vial he was holding slipped from his fingertips and crashed to the floor, leaving a small puddle of bright blue chemical liquid behind.

"Sir?" He seemed at loss of what else to say.

"Gaius, we need your help with something" Arthur started, stepping further into the room, letting go of Merlin's hand.  
"This is going to sound really crazy but I need you to test mine and Merlin's DNA for... well, anything unusual. They injected me with some kind of anti-cure."

This finally pushed the old man into action, he took a blood sample from both of them and started working. It was strange, Merlin found, to watch someone other than Edwin plying with the various chemicals that were necessary to test for magical abilities. Also he soon noticed that Gaius' test was quicker and probably a lot more accurate, judging by the fact that the results popped up on the computer screen only moments later.  
Gaius clicked through the results while muttering to himself, then he started to scribble something down frantically.

Merlin could feel Arthur getting nervous beside him, he cleared his throat, reminding the old man of their presence.

"That's fascinating!" Gaius exclaimed finally.

"Good fascinating or bad fascinating?" Arthur asked dryly.

"Excellent actually. Well, it messes up most of the theories I had about magic but just think what that means for my research. I'll need to look at everything I've done so far from a completely new perspective but..."

"Umm... Gaius? Are we okay?"

"What?" he looked at them confused for a moment.  
Merlin was not sure if it was because he had been too absorbed in his research to think about them or he had plainly forgotten that they were still in the room.  
"Oh, you're both perfectly fine."

Arthur had just opened his mouth to protest, an outrageous expression on his face when the door was flung open with a bang. The man who strode in was none other than Uther Pendragon.

Arthur hurried to his feet.  
"Father..."

But Uther didn't spare his son a second glance. He pointed at Merlin and with a cold "Arrest him" a dozen guards stormed in, taking Merlin into custody.

"Wait!" Arthur ordered the guards, "Please, Father. He saved my life."

"It's embarrassing enough that you needed saving from a sorcerer, but there is no need to disgrace yourself further by trying to protect him from his fate."

"I can't stand by and watch you torture him!"

"Then don't look" Uther spat. "Gaius, I want him treated as soon as possible."

"Sir," Uther had just turned to leave, obviously not expecting any more disagreement when Gaius interjected, "the boy might be a great help for my research. I believe Edwin was trying to facture an anti-cure."

"Right now is hardly the time to think of your research" Uther started but was interrupted by Arthur.  
"It's in my blood."

They watched Uther's eyes widen with shock before he took a sudden step towards Merlin.  
"I want you to reverse it's effects" his voice was low and angry, his face mere inches from Merlin's.

When Merlin only sputtered helplessly, Gaius answered for him "He will do everything he can, Sir."

"Gaius will inject him as soon as his job here is done, then he is free to go" Uther turned his attention to Arthur.

"Very well, Sir" Gaius confirmed when Merlin only nodded weakly. Uther turned and finally left the room.

Arthur let out a deep breath, then his glance fell on Merlin who was standing next to him, his form still, pale and his eyes fixed on the door that Uther had just left through.  
"Merlin?"

"You promised" when he finally turned to face Arthur there was hurt and betrayal in his eyes. "You promised that they wouldn't take my magic."

To his horror Arthur saw a single tear make his way down Merlin's cheek as soon as Merlin noticed it he scrubbed at his face furiously.

"Merlin, they won't" Arthur said, taking a careful step towards him.

"You heard what your father just said" Merlin was yelling now.

"I won't take your magic" he was interrupted by the calm voice of Gaius. "Oh, I've helped hide sorcerers before" he explained with a small smile when Merlin stared at him with wide, unbelieving eyes.

"Thank you!" Merlin whispered finally. His was mind blank, his body numb. He could barely take in all the information. They both hadn't slept last night, yet Arthur seemed to be able to make sense of all the things happening.

"Don't mention it, though I'm sure Arthur's sister would like to hear it once or twice" he added with twinkling eyes.

"Morgana?" Arthur asked surprised.

"Of course" came a amused voice from the doorway.  
Morgana leaned against the frame, her long hair falling in dark waves over her shoulders, "It's not like you have any body else to save your sorry arse... Well, I guess Merlin's doing that job now."

When Arthur only raised an eyebrow at her, she continued. "Oh come on, your plan wasn't that great. Someone had to make sure you don't give Gaius an heart attack, rushing in like that."

"Right. So?" Arthur had a defeated look on his face, that Merlin didn't know to interpret.

"What?" Morgana asked with false innocence.

"Oh, come on. I know you're _not_ just here to gloat."

"Remember when I said I wouldn't interfere anymore? Well, I tried. I let Uther send you on that stupid mission knowing it was a trap. I let him gather heaven and hell, searching for you, knowing it wasn't you he was looking for. I let that stupid rat Sophia come here and play her little part in this whole plot. But then things started to changed" she nodded in Merlin's direction, her eyes never leaving Arthur's. "He changed everything. I couldn't stand by and do nothing anymore..."

"So what happened?"

"Arthur, what Edwin tried to do, changing a non-magic person into a sorcerer, isn't something he came up with all by himself" Gaius started to explain, "About twenty years ago he was working for me. It was shortly after I discovered the Cure, that your father ordered me to research if it was possible to mutate a persons DNA so that they were able to access magic. Just think what it would have meant to have the power over deciding who is allowed to uses magic and who is not, instead of banning it altogether. But I soon found that such a thing wasn't possible. I _did_ develop an anti-cure but it didn't show the desired effect. It did indeed open a channel to magic but the person injected wasn't able to use it. They would merely feel the uses of very strong magic around them" when Gaius stopped he gave Arthur a meaningful glance.

"He injected me, did he?" Arthur asked his eyes wide open with disbelief.  
Gaius nodded mutely.

Merlin watched as Arthur sat down heavily, his shoulders slumped and strands of blond hair covering his face. Merlin felt his heart break at his lover's pain.

"What's going to happen now?" his voice sounded so weak and so terribly confused, that Merlin's hand had came to a rest on Arthur's arm without his notice, silently consoling him.

"I've stopped answering you that question for you when we were five" Morgana said with a soft smile. "The future isn't set in stone, it changes with every decision we make."

Arthur nodded, never lifting his eyes. Finally he stood, pulling Merlin with him.  
"Come on, let's go."

Morgana stopped them when they went to leave the room.

"Since Arthur doesn't seem to think introductions are necessary" she held a hand out for Merlin to take, "I'm Morgana."

"Merlin" he smiled and reached to shake her hand. When their fingers connected Merlin felt the surge of magic flow through him and for a brief moment he saw himself and Arthur walk out of the room, Arthur's arm casually around his shoulders.  
As quickly as the image appeared it was gone again, leaving Merlin confused.  
He shook his head, trying to clear his mind. Then he saw the knowing smirk on Morgana's face.  
"You're a Watcher, right?"

"Right. Come on Merlin" Arthur stated, then wrapped his arm around Merlin's shoulder and steered them both out of the room.

 **the end**


End file.
